$849 64GB iPhone 5s costs Apple $218 to build

(ZDNet) The iPhone is a flagship handset, and as such it commands a flagship price. But one other thing that’s flagship about the new iPhone 5s is the margin it pulls in for Apple.

According to a teardown analysis carried out analysts at IHS, a top-of-the-line 64GB iPhone 5s, which retails unlocked for $849, costs Apple a mere $218 to build, a price that includes the manufacturing costs.

The build price difference between this and the 16GB iPhone 5s is less than $20, and yet Apple charges consumers a whopping $200 for the extra 48GB of storage.